The Fossil Ridge High School’s boys basketball team could not cap off their phenomenal year with a state title, losing to Thunder Ridge High School 58-49 in the state title game on Saturday, March 12.

The weekend started off sweet though, as Fossil defeated Chaparral 65-56 in their Final Four matchup. The Sabercats trailed at halftime, falling behind 28-23 after 16 minutes. However, Fossil was not content with their performance early on, bouncing back big during the final two quarters. The team responded by scoring 42 points in the second half, almost doubling their scoring from the first.

“In the locker room, Coach [Johannsen] was telling all of us to get into the paint and be confident with our shot. So coming out of the locker room I knew if I got the ball to just go up and score, and I did that,” said junior, Nick Randall.

Randall led his team with an incredible performance, scoring 25 points and adding 12 rebounds, the majority of which came during that second half. Despite coming out timid, Randall and the rest of the Sabercats were able to rebound and secure the victory.

“It’s the Final Four. I was coming into this game, knowing I was going to be a big part of it,” Randall said. 

In addition to Randall’s 25 point night, three other Sabercats found themselves in double digits by the end of the night. Fossil continued their trend of spreading the scoring around, as it was the second game in a row that four players scored 10+ points.

“It was great team ball…everyone on this team can score…we just fed the person that was shooting good,” Randall said.

One of the other Sabercats in double digits was senior, Brock Mishak. Despite scoring 12 points, Mishak still fell below his average of 20.4 points per game. Despite the below average point total, Mishak found other ways to influence the contest, ending the night with eight rebounds and eight assists.

“My guys were running the floor, and they didn’t want to run back with us. So it was great to run the floor and get easy buckets for my teammates when my shot wasn’t falling tonight,” Mishak said.

After the hard fought battle against Chaparral, Fossil turned around the next day to face Thunder Ridge for the 5A championship. This directly mirrored their experience earlier in the season, facing these two teams back-to-back during the T-Ridge/Chaparral tournament. 

This did not phase the Sabercats, as they entered halftime ahead 30-22, as Mishak picked up the scoring, pouring in 16 points. However the lead would not last for long, as Thunder Ridge rebounded during the second half, out scoring Fossil by 17, and capturing their second consecutive state title. 

Despite the disappointing end, the Fossil Ridge boys basketball team put together possibly the most impressive season in their history. The Sabercats ended the year with a 26-2 record, including a 21 game win streak. They ended the year as both conference and city champions, going undefeated in both regards. 

This marks the final year for senior guards Mishak and Will Hemme, who will be moving on from the program. However, Fossil has plenty of firepower remaining, as four Junior starters will be returning, including Ty Brown, Domenic Leone, Colin Hayes, and Randall.

While this season did not have a happy ending, there were plenty of bright spots for the team throughout their incredible season.